A lit artificial Christmas tree has been listed as the cause of a fire that damaged a Havelock home on Friday afternoon.

The fire call came in around 1:15 p.m. after smoke was reported coming from the home at 104 Quail Ridge Road.

No one was at home at the time the fire started, said Rick Zaccardelli, chief of the Havelock Fire and Rescue Department.

Zaccardelli said an investigation pointed to the lights on the Christmas tree as the cause of what he termed an unintentional electric fire.

“The lights had been left on for some time, about 24 hours,” he said. “It’s a good idea for safety reasons with the holidays coming up that if you leave your home, you unplug your lights when you’re gone.”

When firefighters first arrived, smoke was coming from windows on the first and second floors of the home. Zaccardelli said the fire was confined to just one room, and firefighters needed only minutes to douse the flames. Still, he said the home had significant smoke and heat damage.

Zaccardelli said the power has since been turned off to the home, and those who were renting it would have to stay elsewhere.

“The Red Cross is meeting with them to help,” he said.

The renters sat on a curb near the home as firefighters worked, holding their dog and being consoled by neighbors, friends and their insurance agent.

Crew from Havelock and Cherry Point responded to the fire. No one was injured.